Europe
EU, US to increasingly target supporters of Russia’s war in Ukraine
dpa
March 11, 2023
Ukrainian artillerymen from the 24th brigade load an ammunition inside of a 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer at a position along the front line in the vicinity of Bakhmut, Donetsk region, on Dec. 10, 2022, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (Ihor Tkachov, AFP/TNS)
WASHINGTON (Tribune News Service) — The European Union and the United States are planning to further limit support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and U.S. President Joe Biden announced on Friday.
"We are taking new steps together to target additional third-country actors across the globe to disrupt support for Russia's war from any corner of the world where it is identified," the two leaders said in a statement released after talks in Washington.
Special attention would be paid to preventing Russia from circumventing sanctions, von der Leyen said during a brief news encounter at the White House.
"We are working in lockstep to limit Russian revenue even further while ensuring continued energy supplies to emerging market and developing countries," the statement continued, without naming concrete measures.
Biden and von der Leyen also didn't specifically mention China. The U.S. and the EU are considering imposing sanctions against Beijing if it is confirmed that the country is supporting Russia with weapons deliveries.
Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022. In response, the EU, the U.S. and a series of other G20 nations, including Britain, have imposed a series of sanctions against Moscow.
China has so far not condemned Russia's invasion of its neighbor.
Following their meeting on Friday, von der Leyen and Biden also announced the start of work on a critical raw materials agreement to head off a EU-U.S. dispute over clean tech subsidies.
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